Pocket lighter



E. PROJAHN POCKET LIGHTER June 1, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 2, 1962 m O w l. O

FIG

INVENTOR.

E M IL PR OJA HN E. PROJAHN POCKET LIGHTER June 1, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 2, 1962 INVENTOR. E MIL PR OJAHN United States Patent 3 Claims. in. 67--7.1)

The present invention relates to a pocket lighter and, more specifically, to a pocket lighter with an adjusting disc for adjusting the size of the flame.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a pocket lighter of the above mentioned type which is simple in construction and can easily be assembled and disassembled.

It is another object of this invention to provide a pocket lighter as set forth in the preceding paragraph, which is equipped with a nozzle lifter and with means for effectively protecting the nozzle against soiling.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear more clearly from the following specification in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a side View of a lighter according to the present invention with the housing removed therefrom.

FIG. 2 illustrates the housing for the lighter of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the entire lighter.

FIG. 4 shows the lighter in the region of the nozzle with the nozzle lifter removed therefrom.

FIG. 5 is a partial section through the lighter at the nozzle with the nozzle lifter in place.

FIG. 5a illustrates, partly in section, and on a larger scale than FIG. 5, the nozzle and operating lever region of the lighter with the nozzle open.

FIG. 5b is a top view of a holding ring for use in connection with the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a side view of the nozzle lifter.

FIG. 6a is a top view of the nozzle lifter.

FIG. 7 is a section through the nozzle showing the arrangement of the seal therefor.

The lighter according to the invention is characterized primarily in that the adjusting disc is covered by the housing of the lighter and thereby is protected against accidental undesired adjustment.

According to a further feature of the invention, the nozzle lifter is made of spring wire and forms an independent loose element which greatly facilitates its installation inasmuch as the nozzle lifter can be freely inserted into the mechanism. Similarly, this also facilitates the disassembly of the lighter.

According to still another feature of the present invention, an elastic diaphragm seal is mounted about the nozzle of the lighter whereby said nozzle is protected against soiling, especially by dust. This construction avoids friction as it is encountered with heretofore known seals, while not aifecting the lighter in any way.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the lighter illustrated therein comprises a sparking wheel holder 1, a lighter fluid tank 2, and a cover or housing 3. The lighter furthermore comprises an adjusting disc 4 for adjusting the height of the flame. The upper surface of the lighter fluid container or tank 2 is designated with the reference numeral 5. The wheel holder 1 is provided with a protrusion 6 for a purpose to be described further below. Furthermore, the lighter has a tiltable lid or cover 7 and a movable actuating lever or member 8. When lever 8 is depressed, pin means 8b thereon acting in slot means 7a of the lid will cause the lid to tilt upwardly. A spring (not shown) will cause lever 8 and lid 7 to return when lever 8 is released.

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As mentioned above, the lighter is equipped with a' nozzle lifter 9 (FIGS. 5, 5a, 6, 6a) which is of hairpin shape and comprises a yoke 9a and the free ends 9b. The lighter also comprises a nozzle generally indicated at 11 and having a nozzle head 10 engaged by yoke 9a of the nozzle lifter 9.

More specifically, with reference to FIG. 5a, the nozzle head 10 has connected thereto the nozzle shank 11c provided with a flange 11d. The nozzle head is inserted into a vertical bore in the threaded sleeve 4a which has an adjusting disc 4. Said sleeve 4a threadedly and adjustably engages a nozzle housing or nozzle body 16 connected to the top of tank 2 in any convenient manner, for instance by welding or soldering. The bottom of housing 16 has an aperture 16a therein through which extends a Wick 18. Mounted on the inside of housing 16 at the bottom thereof is a holding ring 17 for wick 18 while a ring 19 of rubber or other resilient material is arranged on said holding ring 17. Above ring 17 is an annular supporting member 20 with a fluid passage, for instance in form of a slot 2%, while resting on said member 20 is a filter 21 of resilient porous material.

The lower end of the threaded sleeve 4a comprises as an integral part a tubular portion 4b with an outwardly flanged bottom 40 so that the flanged bottom, said tubular portion 4b and the lower end of the threaded sleeve 4a will form a groove in which is mounted an annular seal 22 of any convenient material, for instance rubber, for effecting a fluid seal between the housing 16 and the tubular portion 412. The upper side of the flanged bottom 40 forms a valve seat 11a for cooperation with a valve seal 23 mounted in the lower end of the nozzle shank 11c. As will be seen from FIG. 5a, the bottom portion 40 has a fluid passage 4d therethrough, and an annular fluid passage 25 is provided between the inside of threaded sleeve 4a and the outer surface of shank of the nozzle for flow of gas along the nozzle when the valve seat 11:: is spaced from the valve seal 23. The passage 25 communicates with a transverse bore 26 through the shank 110, while said bore 26 communicates with a vertical bore 27 extending through the upper end of nozzle head 10.

The adjusting disc 4 has a bore 28 tapering inwardly toward the top and having a recess at the bottom receiving a disc 13. In bore 28 is inserted a sealing washer or resilient diaphragm 12 which latter is held in bore 28 by a spring ring or snap ring 14. Interposed between disc 13 beneath sealing washer 12 and flange 11d of the nozzle and surrounding the shank 11c inside threaded sleeve 4a is a spring 24 which continuously urges the nozzle shank 11c downwardly to thereby cause seal 23 to engage and close the end of passage 4d. The sealing washer 12 resting on disc 13 prevents dust, especially from the ignition wheel 15, from entering the interior of the nozzle structure.

As will be evident from FIG. 4, the adjusting disc 4 for determining the magnitude of the flame is normally covered by the cover 7 so that said adjusting disc 4 is protected against accidental adjustment.

According to FIG. 1, the adjustability of the magnitude of the flame is limited by an upper and a lower abutment for disc 4. The lower abutment for the smallest flame is formed by the upper surface of tank 2, whereas the upper abutment for the maximum height of the flame is formed by the protrusion 6 of the wheel holder 1. This protrusion 6 of the wheel holder 1 simultaneously has its upper edge serving as an abutment for the end position of lid 7.

The nozzle lifter illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 6a and on a larger scale in FIG. 5a consists of spring wire and has a hairpin shape while forming an independent loose element which, for purposes of installation, can be inserted into the lighter from the front. The removal of the nozzle litter is, of course, effected in the reverse manner. As will be seen from FIGS. and 5a, the hairpin-shaped nozzle lifter 9 has its yoke 9a embracing the movable nozzle head 10 while the free end 912 of lifter 9 is adapted to be engaged and pressed down by the bent portion 8a of the actuating member 8 for lifting the nozzle head 10. The nozzle lifter rests on the upper side of disc 4 and, thus, when end 9b is moved downwardly by portion 8a, the other end 9a of the lifter moves upwardly.

In operation, the actuating member 8 is operated so as to cause the portion 8a to press down the end portion 911 of litter 9 so that the other end portion 9a of the lifter causes the nozzle to be lifted to the desired extent thereby lifting the seal 23 of the valve seat 11a and permitting the fluid to pass through the nozzle head. The magnitude of the flame is controlled by the adjustment of disc 4. It will be appreciated that when disc 4 is turned in one direction so that the threaded sleeve 4a moves downwardly, the bottom 40 will compress the filter 21 to a greater degree to thereby reduce the capillary passages and consequently restrict the flow of fluid. If, on the other hand, disc 4 is rotated in the opposite direciton so that the bottom portion 4c moves upwardly, the filter 21 will expand with the result that the capillary passages become enlarged and more fluid may pass therethrough.

It is, of course, to be understood that the present invention is, by no means, limited to the particular construction shown in the drawings but also comprises any modifications within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In combination in a gas lighter: a tank for receiving fuel which will be gaseous at atmospheric pressure, a nozzle body mounted on said tank threaded internally at its outer end and having a bore at its inner end communicating with the tank, a sleeve threadedly mounted in said body and having a passage therethrough for gas, a nozzle element including a head and a nozzle shank reciprocably mounted in said sleeve, elements of a shut off valve on the inner end of said shank and in the bottom of said sleeve for shutting off gas flow through the sleeve when the nozzle element is pressed inwardly in the sleeve, a spring in the sleeve pressing the nozzle element inwardly therein to close said valve, a passage through said nozzle head and nozzle shank for gas, a dove-tailed recess in the outer end of said sleeve, a diaphragm in said recess sealingly engaging said nozzle head, an ignition wheel carried by the tank adjacent the nozzle head, a press lever on the tank operatively connected with said ignition Wheel and movable for actuating said ignition wheel, lever means connected between the nozzle head and said press lever operable for moving said nozzle head and shank against the bias of said spring to open said valve when the press lever is operated to actuate said ignition wheel, means in the nozzle body beneath the inner end of said sleeve adapted for being variably compressed by the sleeve when the sleeve is adjusted in the body to control the rate of gas fiow from the tank into the sleeve, a disc on said sleeve outside said body for adjustment of the sleeve in the body, abutment means on the tank on one side of said disc to limit movement thereof in one direction, holding means on the tank for holding said ignition wheel, and second abutment means on said holding means on the other side of said disc to limit the movement thereof in the opposite direction.

2. The combination according to claim 1, which includes a wick extending into said tank and into said nozzle body to a point adjacent the inner end of said sleeve, and porous resilient filter means interposed between said wick and the bottom of said sleeve for being variably compressed by the inner end of said sleeve to control gas flow through said nozzle.

3. A gas lighter having a fuel tank, a hollow sleeve, a nozzle head reciprocably mounted in said sleeve, said hollow sleeve being threaded into said tank to permit gas to how from the tank to the nozzle head, an elastic diaphragm sealing between the outer end of the nozzle head and the outer end of the sleeve, a dove-tailed recess in the sleeve receiving the seal, a snap ring in the recess clamping the seal therein, a disc on the sleeve for adjustment thereof in the tank, valve means between the sleeve and the tank adjustable in response to adjustment of said sleeve so that the adjustment of the sleeve will vary the gas flow through the body sleeve to the nozzle, and spaced abutment means carried by the tank for limiting the adjustment of said sleeve thereon.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,018,648 1/62 Todtenhofer 67-7.l 3,048,991 8/62 Iketani 67-7.1 3,050,973 8/ 62 Goddard 677.1

FOREIGN PATENTS 70,495 12/ 58 France. 1,198,575 6/59 France. 1,200,837 7/59 France. 1,230,371 3/60 France.

733,033 7/55 Great Britain. 809,552 2/59 Great Britain. 834,432 5/60 Great Britain.

OTHER REFERENCES German printed application 1,090,891, Oct. 13, 1960. EDWARD J. MICHAEL, Primary Examiner. FREDERICK L. MATTESON, JR., Examiner. 

1. IN COMBINATION IN A GAS LIGHTER: A TANK FOR RECEIVING FUEL WHICH WILL BE GASEOUS AT ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE, A NOZZLE BODY MOUNTED ON SAID TANK THREADED INTERNALLY AT ITS OUTER END AND HAVING A BORE AT ITS INNER END COMMUNICATING WITH THE TANK, A SLEEVE THREADEDLY MOUNTED IN SAID BODY AND HAVING A PASSAGE THERETHROUGH FOR GAS, A NOZZLE ELEMENT INCLUDING A HEAD AND A NOZZLE SHANK RECIPROCABLY MOUNTED IN SAID SLEEVE, ELEMENTS OF A SHUT OFF VALVE ON THE INNER END OF SAID SHANK AND IN THE BOTTOM OF SAID SLEEVE FOR SHUTTING OFF GAS FLOW THROUGH THE SLEEVE WHEN THE NOZZLE ELEMENT IS PRESSED INWARDLY IN THE SLEEVE, A SPRING IN THE SLEEVE PRESSING THE NOZZLE ELEMENT INWARDLY THEREIN TO CLOSE SAID VALVE, A PASSAGE THROUGH SAID NOZZLE HEAD AND NOZZLE SHANK FOR GAS, A DOVE-TAILED RECESS IN THE OUTER END OF SAID SLEEVE, A DIAPHRAGM IN SAID RECESS SEALINGLY ENGAGING SAID NOZZLE HEAD, AN IGNITION WHEEL CARRIED BY THE TANK ADJACENT THE NOZZLE HEAD, A PRESS LEVER ON THE TANK OPERATIVELY CONNECTED WITH SAID IGNITION WHEEL AND MOVABLE FOR ACTUATING SAID IGNITION WHEEL, LEVER MEANS CONNECTED BETWEEN THE NOZZLE HEAD AND SAID PRESS LEVER OPERABLE FOR MOVING SAID NOZZLE HEAD AND SHANK AGAINST THE BIAS OF SAID SPRING TO OPEN SAID VALVE WHEN THE PRESS LEVER IS OPERATED TO ACTUATE SAID IGNITION WHEEL, MEANS IN THE NOZZLE BODY BENEATH THE INNER END OF SAID SLEEVE ADAPTED FOR BEING VARIABLY COMPRESSED BY THE SLEEVE WHEN THE SLEEVE IS ADJUSTED IN THE BODY TO CONTROL THE RATE OF GAS FLOW FROM THE TANK INTO THE SLEEVE, A DISC ON SAID SLEEVE OUTSIDE SAID BODY FOR ADJUSTMENT OF THE SLEEVE IN THE BODY, ABUTMENT MEANS ON THE TANK ON ONE SIDE OF SAID DISC TO LIMIT MOVEMENT THEREOF IN ONE DIRECTION, HOLDING MEANS ON THE TANK FOR HOLDING SAID IGNITION WHEEL, AND SECOND ABUTMENT MEANS ON SAID HOLDING MEANS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF SAID DISC TO LIMIT THE MOVEMENT THEREOF IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION. 